Just finished _Huckleberry Finn_, after Jim Bell’s post on its “mirror moment.” Enjoyed all the satire and irony. Thought the last section, where they’re delayed by Tom’s shenanigans while working to free Jim, lost the edge that the rest had. Thought the ending depended too much on coincidence.

_Talking to My Daughter about the Economy or, How Capitalism Works–and How It Fails_ by Yanis Varoufakus. Great short overview. Wish I had had it when I was teaching economics. What students need to know before they start worrying about marginal this and ceteris paribus that.

Working through the Harry Bosch novels after reading several of the later ones and the Lincoln Lawyer series. Waiting on _The Last Coyote_ from Overdrive. Looking forward to _Dark Sacred Night_.

Also up to #3 of the Louise Penny Three Pines/Inspector Gamache mysteries, _The Cruelest Month_.

I just finished The Flicker of Old Dreams by Susan Henderson and can’t recommend it highly enough – a fresh take on the “stranger comes to town” story – also a new voice in detective fiction, Kristen Lepionka “The Last Place you Look” – her central detective, Roxane (with a single “n” as she likes to say) Weary, daughter of a slain cop, reluctant P.I. is a winner. And “Let Him Go” – a short, concise, spare novel by Larry Watson that is a classic read. Set in big-sky country, in mid-century America, the scene in the hotel room when the Weboys confront George and Margaret will haunt you

I am reading THE DRAMA ARTIST by Koren Zailckas. I believe that it won’t be available until next week but you should put it on your must-read list. A con artist with two children attempts to supplement her husband’s steadily decreasing income through a series of artful dodges that threaten to reveal her past secrets. It’s worth reading for the cons alone but the way the author slices into and out of the gristle of personal relationships sets it apart from the rest of the pack.